Game 164: Universe (1994) - Introduction

Written by MenhirMike

British game developer Core Design is one of the more beloved Amiga developers, thanks to classics like Rick Dangerous, Chuck Rock, Banshee, or Bubba 'n' Stix. Of course, the one game that overshadows all of their other games combined is Tomb Raider, which also helped Sony’s PlayStation dominate the market even more than it already did (despite first releasing on Sega's ill-fated Saturn console).

But we're here to look at their adventure game output, and they are certainly not beloved for that. In fact, there are only two games to list: 1992's Curse of Enchantia (which was reviewed here by Alfred n’ the Fettuc and scored a whole 22 points) and today's topic, 1994's Universe. I almost thought that they had a saving grace because they also made Hook - but that's actually an action game on Genesis and not the adventure game, which was made by Ocean Software.

Game 163: Goblins Quest 3 (1994) – Introduction

 By Ilmari

Is Crash Bandicoot making a cameo?

It is again time for that inevitable question that necessarily raises its head…

…is this a Lemmings clone?

Game 161: Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures (1994) - Introduction

Written by Michael

This might be the most unlikely game I’ll review for the blog, and I’m the one who volunteered for it.  An adventure-ish sequel to one of the most important coin-op games of all time.  Yes, this was added to the blog with a CAP purchase during our year-ahead planning.  Will I regret this?

It’s important to start with the original, I suspect.  In 1979, a team of programmers at Namco aimed to design a game with universal appeal to both genders, since most of the games before then were based on “manly” pursuits like sports.  Simple concept for the game:  our generic character runs around the game board, eating as many dots as possible, avoiding being caught by ghosts.  Not really aimed at any specific gender or demographic, the only requirement was good reflexes.

Dragonsphere – Final Rating

Written by Vetinari

Our friend Douglas Kaufman put forth some very strong words in the design notes for Dragonsphere, saying that “we've got the best product” and “we like to think we have the competition beat in every category”.

“And I stand by what I said!” – Doug Kaufman, probably.

I cannot deny that this game is much better than the two previous MPS Labs adventures, but will it be enough for a high PISSED rating? Let's see with the breakdown categories below.

Alone in the Dark 2 - Final Rating

Written by Andy Panthro

I started this game knowing that the first one is a classic of the genre, and helped define what we would later call “survival horror”. A sequel, especially with quite a short development time, was always going to be a challenge. There was definitely more of an action focus this time, with a desire to make something a bit more exciting and cinematic than the first game.

I think it’s fair to say if you’ve played this, or read my posts, it doesn’t quite live up to either the expectations generated from the first game nor does it provide the action-packed experience that seemed to be the goal.

Unfortunately this is in part due to the nature of the game itself, the design of the game gives you quite limited movement options and doesn’t lend itself to quick movement or combat. There were too many sections of this game that became quite frustrating as you can become very easily stun-locked by enemies, as their attack cycles were too fast. As for attacking yourself, the fixed camera angles and tank controls mean aiming is a tricky procedure and it can often be difficult to get the right angle to attack.

At times this really does stretch the limits of what you might consider an “adventure game”, but there are items to use, puzzles to solve and places to search. Certainly as the series progresses, future games will continue to move towards action rather than adventure, and outside of the remit of this blog.